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[House  of  Representatives — Secret  S^essiottT] 

nOU.SE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES,  December  31,  lS63._Rcad 
first  and  second  times,  postponed,  ordered  to  be  printed,  and  made 
special  order  On-  Monday  next,  and  from  day  to  day. 

[Mr.  Baldwin,  from  Special  Committee  on  Currenfcy.] 

^    BILL 

To  be  entitled  "An  Act  to  tax,  fund,  and  limit  the  currency." 

1  Section  1.   The.  Congreas  of  the  Confederate  States  of  Amei-ica  do 

2  enact.  All  treasury  notes  above  the  denomination  of  five  dollars, 

3  not  bearing  interest,  issued  before  the  passage  of  this  act,  shall, 

4  until  the  first  day  of  Marclj,  1864,  be  fundable  in  six  per  cent. 

5  bonds  of  the  Confederate  States. 

1  Sec.  2.  On  and  after  the  first  day  of  March,    1864,  all  such 

2  treasury  notes  shall  be  fundable  only  in  four  per  cent,  bonds  of 

3  the  Confederate  States,  and  at  the  following  rates,  viz  :     Until 

4  the  first  day  of  May,  1864,  at  par;  until  the  first  day  of  June, 

5  1864,  at  seventy-five  cents  in  the  dollar;    until  tho  first  day  of 

6  July,  1864,  at  fifty  cents  in  the  dollar ;  and  until  the  first  day  of 

7  August,    186-/,  at  twenty-five   cents   in   the  dollar.      All   such 

8  treasury  notes  outstanding  on  or  after  the  fii^t  day  of  August, 

9  1864,  shall  be  deemed  to  be  satisfied  and  discharged. 


2 

1  Sfx.  3,  Until  the  first  day  of  May,  1864,  all  such  treasury  notes 

2  shall  be  receivable  at  par  for  all  Governmsnt  dues,  except  export 

3  duties';  but  on  and  after  that  day  they  shall  be   receivable  only 

4  at  the  rates  herein   provided  for  the  funding  thereof.     At  these 

5  rates,  any  person  may  pay  into  the  treasury,  o«  to  any  depository 

6  thereof,  any  sum  he  may  choose  on  account  of  taxes  to   accrue 

7  and  become  payable  before  the  first  day   of  January,  1865,  and 

8  upon  such  payment  shall  be  entitled  to  a  certjiijcate  Avhich  shall 

9  be  receivable  in  payment  of  such  taxes ;    but  these  certificates 
1(1  shall  not  be  transferred,  except  by  special  assignment. 

1  Sec.  4.  All  treasury  notes  of  the  denomination  of  five  dollars 

2  and  under,  issued  before  the  passage  of  this  act,  shall  continue 

3  to  be  receivable  in  payment  of  all  public  dues,  except  export 

4  duties,    but   shall   not   hereafter  .be  fundable.      All   call   loan 

5  certificates  shall  be  fundable  and  receivable  upon  such  terms  only 

6  as   are   herein    provided   for   the   notes    into   which    they   are 

7  convertible. 

1  Sec.  5.  The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  hereby  authorized 

2  to   make   a   new   issue   of    treasury   notes    to   an    amount  not 

3  exceeding  two  hundred  millions  of  dollars — payable  two  years 
4'  after  a  definitive  treaty  of  peace  with  the  United  States,  and  in 

5  such  form,  of  such  denominations,  and  with  such  authentication 

6  as  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  shall  prescribe.     When  these 

7  notes  shall  be  in  any  manner  received  into  the  treasury,  they 


8  may  be  rc-issucd,  or  be  substituted  by  others  of  like  amount,  so     ;:j  i^,^ 

0  as  not  at  any  time  to  increase  the  whole  amount  in  circulation 
10  beyond  the  said  sum  of  two  hundred  millions  of  dollars. 

1  Skc.  6.    The   treasury   notes   authorized    by   the   preceding 

2  section  shall  be  receivable  in  payment  of  all  public  dues,  except 

3  such  as  shall  be  specially  declared  to  be  payable  in  specie  only, 

4  They   shall  be  exempt^  from  all  taxation;     and  the  faith  of  the 

5  Governmeii/,  is  hereby   pledged' that  the  entire  amount  of  such 

6  notes  to  be  issued  under  this  or  any  future  act  shall  not  exceed 

7  the  sum  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  dollars  at  any  time. 

1  Sec.    7.     To   defray    tlie    expenses    of    the   (Jovernment  not 

2  otherwise  provided  for,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  hereby 

3  authorized  to  issue  six  per  cent,  bonds  of  the  Confederate  States 

4  to  an  amount  not  exceeding  five  hundred  millions  of  dollars,  the 

0  principal   and  interest  whereof  shall   bo   forever  free   from  all 

6  taxation,  and  for  the  payment  whereof,  principal  and  interest,  the 

7  entire  nctt  receipts  into  the  Treasury  of  all  duties  on  imports 

8  are  hereby  specially  pledged. 

1  Sec.  S.  The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  hereby  authorize*! 

2  to  sell  these  bonds,  or  such  portion  of  them  as  may  be  necessary  for 

3  treasury  notes  of  the  new  issue,  at  par ;  and  it  shall  be  lawful 

4  for  any  person  desiring  to  purchase  such  bonds  to  pay  into  the 

5  Treasury,  .or  to  any  depository  thereof,  in  treasury  notes  of  the 

6  now  issue,  the  amount  ho  wishes  to  invest,  and  to  receive  therefor 


4 

7  a  certificate  which  shall  entitle  him  to  demand  a  bond  for  the 

8  amount  with  interest  from  the  time  of  such  payment. 

1  Sec.  9.  If  any  deficiency  in  supplying  the  demands  upon  the 

2  Treasury  shall  occur  after  the  first  day  of  April,  1864,  and  sales 

3  of  these   bonds   cannot   be    made  at   par,  the    Secretary  of  the 

4  Treasury  is  hereby  authorized  to  make  sales  at  such  prices  as  he 

5  can  obtain,  of  an  amount  sufficient  to  supply  such  deficiency. 

1  Sec.  10.     The    bonds    authorized   by    this  act  may  be  either 

3  registered  or  coupon  bondi^-,  as  the  parties  taking  them  may  elect, 

3  and  they  may  be  exchanged  for  each  other  under  such  regulations 

4  as  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  may  prescribe      They  shall  be 
3  for  one  hundred  dollars  or  for  some  multiple  of  one  hundred,  and 

6  shall  be  in  such  form  and  with  such  authentication  as  the  Secre- 

7  tary  of  the  Treasury  may    prescribe.       The    interest    shall    be 

8  ^'payable  half  yearly,  on  the  first  day  of  January  and  July  in  each 

9  year ;  the  principal  shall  be  payable  not  less  than  thirty  years 

10  from  their  date,  but  the  Government  may,  at  any  time  after  five 

11  years  from  their  date,  pay  them  at  its  pleasure. 

1  Sec.  11.    After  the    15th  day  of  February,  18G4,  it  shall  be 

2  lawful  for   any  bank  or   other  party  having    on  deposit    or  in 

3  custody  any   treasury  notes  of   the   property  of    another,  and 

4  subject  to  the  provisions  of  the  first,  second,  and  third  sections 
6  of  this  act,  to  fund  the  same  on  account  and  for  the  use  oS  the 
G  0"Vfner. 


1  Sec.  12.  Wherever,  in  this  act,  a  time  is  limited  for  the  doing 

2  of  anything  relative  to  the  funding  or  receiving  of  treasury  notes 

3  under  the  first,  second,  third,  and  fourth  sections,  two  months 

4  additional  time  shall    be  allowed   therefor  in  those   parts  of  the 

5  Confederacy    west  of  the    Mississippi  river,    but  the  certificates 

6  mentioned  in  the  third  section  shall  not  in  any  case  be  received 

7  for  taxes  becoming  payable  after  the  31st  of  December,  1864. 

1  Sec.  1 3.  The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  authorized  to  increase 

2  the  number  of  depositories  so  as  to  meet  the  requirements  of 

3  this  act,  and  with  that  view  to  employ  such  of  the  banks  in  the 

4  several  States  as  he  may  deem  expedient. 

1  Sec.    14.     The    Secretary  of    the    Treasury     shall   forthwith 

2  advertise  this  act  in  such  newspapers  published  in  the  several 
'»      3  States  as  will  secure  immediate  and  extended  publicity,  and  the 

4  Secretary  of   War,  and    the   Secretary  of  the   Navy,  will    each 

5  cause  it  to  be  published  in  general  orders  for  the  information  of 
G  the  army  and  navy. 

1  Sec.  lo.  The  issue  of  treasury  notes,  except  as  herein  provided 

2  for,  is  hereby  prohibited;  and  the  forty-second  section  of  the 

3  "  act  for  the  assessment  and  collection  of  taxes,"  approved  May,' 

4  1,  1863,  is  hereby  repealed. 


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